Bruce deemed it unsafe to rank under the banner of his natural
sovereign, and therefore joined the side of Edward. Whereupon, the
Scottish king, John Baliol, confiscated his estate of Annandale, as
that of a traitor, and gave it to one of his followers, Comyn, earl of
Buchan. Some of the English peers, suspecting the fidelity of young
Bruce, who had now retired to the family estate in England, summoned
him to Carlisle to do homage. He forthwith obeyed, and swore fidelity
to the cause of Edward, and in order to show his loyalty, he assembled
some of his followers, and overran the lands of Sir William Douglas, a
Scottish patriot, and even carried away his wife and children. Stung
with remorse, however, for this treacherous act, which was really
extorted from him, young Bruce then joined the Scottish army, which
Wallace, the brave patriot, together with the bishop of Glasgow, and
steward of Scotland, had raised. The Scottish leaders were too much
at variance amongst themselves to make a resolute stand. The English,
knowing of their dissensions, sent messengers to treat with them.
With the exception of William Wallace, they sued for peace, and threw
down their arms without striking a blow. Bruce deemed it prudent to
submit with his countrymen to the English king, but such had been the
inconstancy of this nobleman, that the English demanded security for
his future fidelity. Whereupon the bishop of Glasgow, the lord steward,
and Alexander de Lindesay, came forward as his securities, until he
should deliver over his daughter Marjory as an hostage for his loyalty.
The conduct of young Bruce seems to us vacillating and unpatriotic,
viewed from the present age; but he must be judged by the spirit of
those troublesome times, and his after heroic deeds in his country’s
behalf must soften a stern judgment regarding his changeable and
uncertain conduct at this time. By the side of the staunch patriotism
of the brave William Wallace, various acts of Robert Bruce, at this
period of his life, are thrown into an unfavorable light, but his
seeming treachery he regarded as actuated by a prudent policy. Whether
he would have gained the deliverance of his country sooner, or suffered
irretrievable defeat, had he earlier and more steadfastly espoused the
patriotic cause, we find ourselves at a loss to determine, after a
careful study of that conflicting epoch.
[Illustration: BRUCE.
ROBERTUS I. REX SCOTORUM.
ANNO DOM. MCCCVI.]
The history of Robert Bruce would not be complete without a brief
account of William Wallace, which will help to give a clearer idea of
the affairs of Scotland at that time.
William Wallace was descended from an ancient family in the west of
Scotland. Having been provoked and insulted by an English officer,
Wallace had put him to death, and therefore was obliged to flee for
safety to the forests. Here he collected a large band of bold men. Some
of these were outlawed for crimes; others, on account of bad fortune
or hatred of the English, were willing participants in this daring
scheme. William Wallace possessed gigantic strength of body as well as
heroic courage, and so was admirably suited to become a leader in such
a perilous enterprise.
This little band of Scottish warriors made many successful raids
upon their English foes, until the fame of their exploits became
so wide-spread that the English were filled with terror, and their
enslaved countrymen were inspired with hopes of freedom from the
galling yoke of oppression which fettered their hitherto independent
country.
Wallace now determined to strike a decisive blow against the English
government. Warrene, the governor of Scotland, had retired to England
on account of his health, so that the administration of Scotland was
left in the hands of Ormesby, the justiciary, and Cressingham, who
held the office of treasurer. Wallace formed a plan of attacking
Ormesby, at Scone; but the justiciary being informed of such
intentions, fled in terror to England. All the other English officers
imitated his example. The Scots, encouraged by these events, sprang to
arms.
Many of the principal barons, including Sir William Douglas, openly
countenanced the party of Wallace. Meanwhile, Warrene, earl of Surrey,
collected an army of forty thousand men, in the north of England, and
invaded Scotland. He suddenly entered Annandale, and came up with
the enemy at Irvine, before the Scottish forces were prepared for
battle. Many of the Scottish nobles, alarmed at this unforeseen event,
submitted to the English, and renewed their oaths of fealty, and gave
hostages for their fidelity, whereupon they received pardon for their
rebellion. Others, who had not openly declared themselves, thought best
to side with the English, and wait a better opportunity for avowing
themselves as partisans of the Scottish cause. But Wallace persevered
in his bold enterprise, and marched northwards and established his
little army at Cambuskenneth. When Warrene advanced to Stirling, he
found Wallace on the opposite banks of the Forth. Wallace had chosen
a position near a narrow bridge which spanned the Forth, and as the
English, with thoughtless precipitation, commenced to cross, Wallace
attacked them before they were fully formed, and put them to rout,
gaining a complete victory. Among the slain was Cressingham, who
was so hated by the Scots that they flayed his dead body, and made
saddle-girths of his skin. Warrene, finding his remaining forces much
dismayed by this defeat, returned again to England.
Wallace was now made regent, or guardian of the country, by his
enthusiastic followers; and his brave band, not content with their past
exploits, invaded England, and laid waste many counties, returning to
their native land loaded with spoils, and crowned with glory.
But now factions amongst the Scots themselves caused a disaster
which deprived them of all they had gained. The Scottish nobles were
unwilling that Wallace should be placed over them in power; and that
patriot, to avoid jealousies and dissensions, resigned his authority
as regent, retaining only his command over that body of warriors who
refused to follow any other leader than the brave Wallace, under whose
banner they had so often been led to victory.
The Scottish army was now divided into three bands. The chief power
devolved on the steward of Scotland, and Comyn of Badenoch. The third
band was commanded by the valiant Wallace. Edward, having collected
the entire military force of England, Wales, and Ireland, marched into
Scotland with an army of nearly one hundred thousand men.
When the two forces met in battle at Falkirk, the English archers
chased the Scottish bowmen off the field, then shooting their arrows
amongst the pikemen, they were thrown into confusion, and the English
cavalry soon put the Scots to rout, with great slaughter. Some
historians state that the loss of the Scots, upon this occasion, was
fifty or sixty thousand men. In this general rout of the Scottish army,
Wallace’s superior military skill and presence of mind enabled him to
keep his band together, and retiring to the farther bank of a small
river called the Carron, he marched along its banks protected from
the enemy. Bruce, who was serving in the English army, recognized
the valiant Scottish chief, and calling out to him, desired a
conference. This being granted, he endeavored to convince Wallace of
the helplessness of his rash enterprise, and advised him to submit. But
the intrepid Wallace replied, that if he had hitherto acted alone as
the champion of his country, it was because no other would assume the
place. He exhorted Bruce to espouse the cause of his enslaved land,
representing to him the glory of the enterprise, and hope of opposing
successfully the power of the English. With enthusiasm he declared that
he would prefer to give his own life, and the existence of the nation,
when they could only be preserved by receiving the chains of a haughty
victor.
[Illustration: “BRUCE WAS NOT SLOW IN TAKING THE WARNING.”]
Bruce was greatly moved by these sentiments of brave patriotism, and
regretting his engagements to Edward, the enemy of his people, resolved
to embrace the cause of his oppressed country.
We cannot follow the brave and valiant Wallace through his after
career, and will but note his sad and unworthy fate. He was betrayed
into Edward’s hands by Sir John Monteith, who had been his friend.
Edward ordered Wallace to be carried in chains to London, where he
was tried as a rebel or traitor, though he had never sworn fealty to
England; and he was executed on Tower Hill. This barbarous cruelty of
the English king only inflamed the Scots to fresh rebellions; and they
now again sprang to arms, shouting, “Bruce to the rescue!”
Robert Bruce had long resolved to attempt to free his enslaved
country. The death of William Wallace, and the memory of his patriotic
exhortation after the battle of Falkirk, on the banks of the river
Carron, added fresh impetus to this resolve; and his open avowal could
be no longer delayed on account of two incidents which happened about
this time.
Bruce had ventured to disclose this resolve to John Comyn, surnamed the
Red, a powerful nobleman and warm friend. He found Comyn apparently in
full accord with his avowed sentiments. But that nobleman afterwards
treacherously revealed the secret to the English king. Edward did
not immediately seize and imprison Bruce, because he desired also to
ensnare his three brothers, who resided in Scotland. But he placed
spies over Bruce; and a nobleman, Gilbert de Clare, one of the lords in
Edward’s court, but also a friend of Robert Bruce, having learned of
the danger which threatened him, and fearing to risk his own position
by an open warning, sent Bruce a pair of golden spurs and a purse
of gold by his servant, with this message: “My master sent these to
thee, and bid me say, that the receiver would have sagacity enough to
determine quickly to what use they should be put.”
Bruce was not slow in taking the warning. Evidently, some one at court
had betrayed him! Ah, he had it! surely it could be no other than the
Red Comyn!
There is a story told, that three days previous to this event, Robert
Bruce was praying at the altar, in a chapel where afterwards stood St.
Martin’s church. It was midnight, and Bruce was alone. With tearful
eyes he exclaimed,—
“Yes, at the foot of this high altar, I’ll swear forthwith to fling the
yoke from off me, in spite of hostile man and misleading fiend; knowing
that if I put trust in, and pay obedience to, the King of kings, my
triumph shall be sure, my victory complete!”
“Amen to that!” whispered a sweet and plaintive voice in the ear of the
kneeling earl.
Bruce sprang to his feet, exclaiming, “Who art thou?” But he saw
only a muffled figure glide swiftly behind one of the pillars. Bruce
pursued; but the same soft voice replied:—
“I am neither foe to Scotland’s cause, nor shall be to him whose it
is to see her righted, laggard although he be in responding to the
urgent call. Farewell to the valiant Bruce! We may meet again, yet
nevermore in this holy place; for even three days must not elapse and
find him loitering near the stern and subtle Edward, or it will be woe
to Scotland and to Scotland’s mightiest lord! Let the Bruce find his
way to the altar, upon which I place a token for his keeping and his
use—the bugle-horn of the immortal Wallace; with which he summoned to
his standard his faithful countrymen, and led them to victory, till he
was overcome by treachery and death. Take this sacred bugle-horn, and
sound the call for Scotland’s freedom!”
Ere the astonished Bruce could answer, a figure shot past him, and
was lost in the darkness. The earl, groping his way in the dim light
to the altar, found there the precious relic promised; and he went
forth under the starlit midnight sky, vowing to strike a blow for his
enslaved country. Bruce needed no second warning of his danger, but the
very night upon which he received the gilt spurs and purse of gold, he
ordered two of his horses to be shod with reversed shoes, so that their
course might not be traced, as snow had fallen, and the prints of the
horses’ feet would therefore be plainly visible. Then Bruce and one
faithful attendant, named Walter Kennedy, hastily mounted their horses,
and rode out of London under cover of the darkness of the night.
As they left the great city behind them, Walter Kennedy ventured to
say,—
“If I may be so bold, good master, where gang we on sic a night? Thou
bidst me tell our talkative host at the inn, that Garrick’s lord had a
love adventure on foot. But me thinkst thou art too true a knight for
that.”
“Well said, my faithful Walter!” replied Bruce. “’Tis in truth a love
adventure, but concerns no lady fair, for my good wife is fairer to me
than all other women. But ’tis for love of country we go forth,—to free
our bonny Scotland. Surely that were love adventure worthy of both a
valiant knight and loyal husband. Still it is for sake of lovely woman
also; for my sweet wife and fair daughters are e’en now in Scotland,
and I fear me that their liberty, if not their lives, will soon be in
danger, as I am warned that the wily King Edward is my bitter enemy and
treacherous spy.”
“Ha! ’tis well spoken, good master!” exclaimed Kennedy, with
enthusiasm, and lifting his Scotch bonnet from his head, he cried
aloud, “Bruce to the rescue.”
“Hist, man!” said Bruce, laying his hand upon the bridle-rein of his
faithful and loyal retainer; “knowest thou not that these English
forests secrete hostile ears, to whom thy wild cry wouldst betray us?
Not till I have gathered my forces and blown the bugle-horn of the
valiant Wallace, will it be safe to openly sound that war-cry.”
The snow still fell thickly, and it was difficult to follow the right
route through the blinding storm; but ere long the moon shone out with
brightness, and seemed to smile upon their perilous adventure, and
promise success.
After a few days Bruce arrived at Dumfries, in Annandale, the chief
seat of his family interests. Here he found a great number of the
Scottish noblemen assembled, and among the rest the treacherous John
Comyn. These noblemen were astonished at the appearance of Bruce
amongst them, and still more when he avowed his determination to live
or die with them in the defence of the liberty of Scotland. All the
nobles declared their unanimous resolution to rise to arms in the cause
of their enslaved country. Comyn alone opposed this measure. Bruce,
already sure of his treachery, followed Comyn on the dissolution of the
assembly, and attacked him in the cloisters of the Gray Friars, through
which he passed, and piercing him with his sword, left him bleeding on
the ground. As Bruce rushed into the street, pale and agitated, Sir
Thomas Kirkpatrick, one of his friends, asked him if all was well. “I
fear I have slain Comyn,” replied Bruce, as he hastily mounted his
horse.
“Such a matter must not be left to doubt,” exclaimed Kirkpatrick; “I’ll
mak sicker!”—and dashing into the sanctuary, he ran his dagger into the
heart of the dying Comyn.
This deed of Bruce and his friend, which would be justly condemned
in the present age, was at that time regarded as an act of valiant
patriotism and commendable policy. The family of Kirkpatrick were so
proud of the deed that they took for the crest of their arms a hand
with a bloody dagger, and chose for their motto those words, “I’ll mak
sicker!” meaning, “I will make sure of it.”
Bruce now raised the standard of independence. Some priests and lords
gathered round him, and boldly crowned him at Scone. On the day of the
Annunciation, 1306, Scotland received her ninety-seventh king in the
person of the valiant Robert Bruce; and all Scotland rang with the
joyful war-cry, “Bruce to the rescue!”
The undertaking of Bruce was one of a gigantic nature. Yet amidst all
the seemingly insurmountable obstacles which surrounded him from
English foes and Scottish grandees,—who were many of them in league
against him, for the faction of Baliol and the powerful family of
Comyn were his avowed enemies,—and though he was subjected to frequent
perils, dangerous ambuscades and escapes, and many individual conflicts
of daring courage, Robert Bruce persisted firmly in his patriotic
design of restoring his enslaved country to freedom, and giving
protection to the people who had formerly called his ancestor their
king.
Edward I. had now become aged and unwieldly, so that he could not
readily mount on horseback. When he was informed of this daring attempt
of Bruce to wrest from his power a kingdom which had cost him so much
to gain and hold, he despatched a messenger to the Pope, praying him
to issue the thunders of the Vatican against this bold traitor and
murderer of Comyn, and that he would place under interdict all who
should endeavor to aid him or draw a sword in defence of liberty. This
sentence of interdict, which the Pope often issued against sovereigns
for the most trivial offences, involved a nation in the greatest
misery. The people were deprived of all the services of the church; no
sacred rite was performed for them except the baptism of infants, and
the administration of the communion to the dying.
The churches were deserted, and the altars were stripped of all the
sacred ornaments. The dead lay uninterred, for the consecrated ground
was prohibited; and when at last the corpses must be buried, they were
hurriedly piled up in ditches and covered over, without any church
service to soothe the surviving mourners or hallow the last rites to
the dead. The thunders of the Roman pontiff, however, fell powerless
upon Robert the Bruce, for he had previously secured the alliance
of the Scottish clergy; and as they wished to remain independent
of the English bishops, they braved the thunders of the hierarchy,
and persisted in celebrating divine worship, notwithstanding its
prohibition by the head of the church.
In spite of old age and sickness, King Edward began to make extensive
preparations for marching personally against the Scots. Prince Edward,
his son, was twenty-two years of age, and having not yet been knighted,
the king conferred this distinction upon him and bestowed upon him
his spurs. Whereupon the young knight then conferred the same honor
upon two hundred and seventy young lords who were about to become his
comrades in arms. All the company then met at a magnificent banquet.
A golden net was placed upon the table, containing two swans, emblems
of constancy and fidelity. Then the king, placing his hands upon their
heads, swore to avenge the death of Comyn and to punish the rebels of
Scotland, without sleeping for two nights in the same place, and to
start immediately afterwards for Palestine, in order to rescue the Holy
Sepulchre. The young men swore the same oath as the king, and then they
started for the frontiers, the king following more slowly, as he was
too feeble to travel except upon a litter.
The earl of Pembroke had been sent by King Edward, with a small army,
into Scotland while the king was preparing his forces. Pembroke met
the Scots at Methven, where a battle was fought in which the Scots
were defeated, and many of them killed and taken prisoners; these were
afterwards put to death with great cruelty by Edward’s orders. Bruce
retired into the mountains with five hundred men. King Edward had only
been able to proceed as far as Carlisle; but on his dying bed he was
cruelly ordering the Scottish prisoners to be beheaded, and still
directing the operations of his troops. Bruce was living in the forests
with a few faithful companions. His wife, daughter, and sister shared
his adventuresome life.
But as winter approached, the ladies were sent to the castle of
Keldrummie, but they met with a sad fate here. The castle was stormed
and taken by the English; Nigel Bruce, Robert’s younger brother, was
cruelly put to death, and the queen of Scotland and her daughter, and
also the sister of Bruce, were sent to England, where the queen was
imprisoned, and the daughter and sister of King Robert were shut up in
wooden cages at Berwick and Roxburgh, and were exposed to the public
gaze.
Bruce’s little band were attacked by Lord Lorn, the Red Comyn’s nephew,
and therefore a bitter foe. Finding that his faithful followers were
falling under the battle-axes of their enemies, King Robert sounded
a retreat; and with marvellous bravery Robert Bruce, mounted upon
his war-horse and clad in armor, took his position in the defile and
defended the approach alone. At length three men, famous for their
strength, sprang forward together upon the royal champion, who calmly
held his long sword on guard, and whose bright eyes glittered beneath
his helmet. One seized the bridle of the horse; but Bruce raised his
sword, and the arm of the assailant fell helpless, his hand being
severed. Another fastened himself on the leg of the horseman; but the
fiery war-horse reared, and again the invincible sword split his head
open. The third now clutched the king’s cloak; but again the sword
dealt its fatal blow, and the three assailants soon lay dead, while the
valiant king escaped without a wound. Robert Bruce was now obliged to
flee, and he took refuge in the small island of Rachrin. His retreat
was unknown to his enemies, and a large reward was offered to whoever
would give news of “Robert Bruce, lost, strayed, or stolen.”
During this time the Scottish king met with many adventures. One day,
leaving the island of Rachrin, he sailed with his little band in some
small boats to the isle of Arran. On landing they met a woman, of whom
the king inquired if there had been any military arrivals.
“Surely, sir,” she replied, “I can tell you of some who lately
blockaded the English governor’s castle. They maintain themselves in
the woods near by.”
Robert Bruce, thinking that it was of brave Douglas of whom she spoke,
blew his horn. It was answered by Sir James Douglas, who recognized
the bugle of his sovereign, and when he hastily approached the king,
they kissed for joy at such fortunate meeting. The small bands of King
Robert and Douglas now crossed in boats to the opposite shore, and
concealed themselves in a cavern, called the Cave of Colean. Learning
that a large party of English were settled in the town of Turnberry,
Bruce made a bold attack upon them, with three hundred men, and put
two hundred of the English to the sword. The garrison, in the castle
near by, were afraid to sally forth, as it was a dark night, and Bruce
carried off the spoil, among which were the war-horses and household
plate of the governor. Bruce now retired with his brave band to a green
hill, called afterwards the “Weary Neuk.” Here they rested for three
days, when they returned to the mountains to wait for reinforcements.
It was then that King Robert learned of the sad fate of his wife,
daughter, and sister, and the cruel death of his brother. But he
humanely spared the life of every captive who fell into his hands,
and did not yield to the temptation to revenge himself by their death,
in retaliation for the wrongs he had suffered. In consequence of his
privations and exposures, he was attacked with a severe sickness,
and having found relief from a certain medicinal spring, when he had
afterwards established himself upon his throne, he founded a priory of
Dominican monks there, and ordered houses to be built around the spring
for eight lepers, and a certain sum of money and meal was settled upon
the lands of Fullarton, for their support. In compliment to Sir William
Wallace, the relatives and descendants of that knight were invested
with the right of placing the lepers upon this establishment, known
as the “King’s Ease.” This was secured by charter, and the leper’s
charter-stone, which was a large stone of elliptical shape, has been
handed down to modern times.